The Ancestors of Paul Sentell This information was provided by Mark Brandenburg, M.D. a decendant of Paul Sentell, because He Loves being a Proud Creole and Wants the World to know about Us And Our Heritage   My family descends from the Creole families of the Barre and Rodrigue sugar plantations St. John the Baptist Parish. My great- great-grandfather, Joseph Barre, and his children are listed as being mulatto in the 1880 census records when they were living and working on the Laura Plantation in St. James Parish. Eventually, they all moved to New Orleans. Joseph Barre and his white wife, Appoline Rodrigue, are one of the few/only examples of a mulatto man being married to a white woman ... thus, the reason they were not allowed to be married in the St. John the Baptist Parish Church, but rather traveled to New Orleans to be married at St. Augustine Church in Treme. You might be interested to know that we have found a person in our family tree who played major league baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies in the very early 1900s. His name was Leopold Paul Sentell, and he was the nephew of our Joseph Barre. Mr. Sentell's mother was Sylvanie Barre (mulatto in the 1870 census records), who was the daughter of Achilles Barre and Charlotte Rosalie (believed to be a slave on the Barre sugar plantation). Bottom line -- We believe a mulatto Louisiana Creole, Leopold Paul Sentell, grandson of a slave, may be the first or one of the first examples of a person of color playing major-league baseball ... well before Jackie Robinson. I have attached a couple pictures of Mr. Sentell. After playing for the Philadelphia Phillies for two seasons, he later became an umpire in the major-leagues. Just thought you might like to share in another proud moment and Creole history. Thank you so much for your wonderful website.   Mark Brandenburg, M.D

 

 

 

 

 

Texas A&M Baseball ......Assistant Coach

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Paul Sentell More on Paul ...click here The Baseball Almaniac

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Paul Sentell a player who appeared in the majors in 1906 and 1907.   Leopold Theodore Sentell   Bats .......Right, Throws Right Height ....5' 9", Weight 176 lb. Debut....... April 12, 1906 Final Game...... April 27, 1907 Born .....August 27, 1879 in New Orleans, LA USA Died....... April 27, 1923 in Cincinnati, OH USA Biographical Information Leopold Theodore Sentell     is remembered as Paul Sentell, a player who appeared in the majors in 1906 and 1907.     He had almost all of his at-bats in 1906 with the Philadelphia Phillies, and played mostly third and second base. Although his .229 batting average doesn't seem like much, the team hit only .241, and neither the regular second baseman (Kid Gleason) nor the regular third baseman (Ernie Courtney) hit over .236. However, they had better fielding percentages than Sentell. An article in the New York Times, dated March 18, 1917, states that "an ancient feud" between Sentell and John McGraw was rekindled during a St. Patrick's Day exhibition game between the New York Giants and the Galveston team, on which Sentell was player-manager. It was caused by an umpire's decision and reversal that was disputed. The Galveston crowd then threatened the Giants "with utter destruction", at which point the Galveston team's owner told Sentell to back down when McGraw threatened his team would not continue to play. Sentell played first base and batted seventh in that game, going 2-for-5 against Jim Middleton. The Giants won the game. Source

 

More interesting stats on this Bold, Daring and Great Man

Important documents of Paul Sentell that show his Heritage , Racial Characteristics and His Association with Early American Major League Baseball... Click to enlarge documents and for better reading

 

Family documentation on Heritage, Race, Ethnicity and History Copy of 1920 US Census Paul Sentell Family Certificate of Birth Certificate of Burial 1870 Federal Census ..Names 1870 Federal Census 1910 Federal Census `1910 Federal Census ....Names 1900 Federal Census

 

The Ancestors of Paul Sentell This information was provided by Mark Brandenburg, M.D., because he loves being a proud Creole and wants the world to know about us and our heritage.   Dear Augustine and All My family descends from the Creole families of the Barre, Rodrigue and Bossie sugar plantations in St. John the Baptist Parish. My great-great-grandfather, Joseph Barre, and his children are listed as "mulatto" in the 1880 census records when they were living and working on the Laura Plantation in St. James Parish. Eventually, they all moved to New Orleans. Joseph Barre and his white wife, Appoline Rodrigue, are one of the few/only examples of a man of color being married to a white woman ... thus, the reason they were not allowed to be married in the St. John the Baptist Parish Church, but rather traveled to New Orleans to be married at St. Augustine Church, in Treme. Even more interesting, Joseph Barre's sister, Sylvanie "Fanny" Barre had a son who played major league baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1906 and 1907 seasons. His name was Leopold Theodore "Paul" Sentell. He was the nephew of our Joseph Barre. Mr. Leopold Theodore "Paul" Sentell's mother was Sylvanie Barre, recently confirmed to have been born a slave on the Bossie plantation in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana. She was the daughter of Achilles Barre and Sylvanie "Charlotte" Rosalie, also born a slave on the same Bossie plantation.  The mother of Sylvanie "Charlotte" Rosalie (born in 1830), was named Rosalie, and known to have been a slave on the same Bossie plantation. married Jean "John" Sentille's married in 1868.  They later moved to New Orleans where they raised several children and became well known citizens of the Crescent City.  One of their children was a boy named Leopold Theodore "Paul" Sentell, who loved the game of baseball and was fortunate enough to have made a living in the minor leagues and eventually played for the Philadelphia Phillies.  He later became a much respected major-league baseball umpire.  In the 1900 U.S. census from New Orleans, John and Sylvanie Sentell and their children, including Leopold Theodore "Paul," identified themselves as "black." As we all know, the formal exclusion of blacks from major league baseball took place in the 1860s.  Leopold Theodore "Paul" Sentell, an African-American Creole from Louisiana, and son of a former slave, is the first example of a person of color playing major-league baseball (playing for two seasons, from 1906 through 1907) … well before Jackie Robinson.  No doubt, he was light-skinned enough to "pass" without much controversy … nonetheless, we believe his achievement merits recognition. Just thought you might like to share in another proud moment and Creole history. Thank you so much for your wonderful website. Mark Brandenburg, M.D.     It makes Creole People extremely proud to know that there are some of Us that want to share Our Story to the World .. It touches Us to know that preserving Our Heritage, achievements and Culture and sharing it with the World is another way to say that we cannot be forgotten and that Our Heritage can and will be preserved for future generations of Creoles who will continue to pass on Our Rich Culture for generations to come .. Mark Brandenburg, M.D. is one Proud Creole who has brought our achievements to the fore front so that all can see what Our Ancestors have done and why their achievements will never be forgotten.. Augustine / Comeaux     More documentation on The Sentell's Below

Sylvanie Barre Sentell... Death Certificate......Click to enlarge